1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an air cleaner connected to a carburetor of an internal combustion engine for supplying filtered air thereinto and, more particularly, to an air cleaner mounted on portable working machines such as an engine cutter or a chain saw and so on.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Air cleaners of the conventional type are arranged, for example, in such a manner that a cylindrical cleaner element is disposed within a cleaner main body to draw outside air into a space between the cleaner main body and the cleaner element in a direction circumferential along the outer periphery of the cleaner element, to filter the introduced air by passing it through the cleaner element, to introduce the air into an inner space defined within the cylindrical cleaner element, and to supply the clean air through an elbow or the like from the inner space into a carburetor.
In these conventional air cleaners, because dust having relatively large particle sizes easily arrives at and is directly received on a surface of the cleaner element, the cleaner element becomes clogged in a short period of time so that the frequent cleaning and the replacement of the cleaner element must be conducted. The whole cylindrical surface of the cleaner element cannot thus uniformly pass the air therethrough, and these cause problems deteriorating cleaning efficiency and inhibiting available utility for the cleaner elements, whereby the cleaner may produce relatively large noise during sucking air.